Joseph Silva Triumphs At Tulloch For First-Ever BAM Tournament Trail Kayak Series James Croco Claims Runner-Up Ranking Copperopolis, Calif. – With a total of 91.75 inches, Joseph Silva of Windsor, Calif. claims the first-ever BAM Tournament Trail (BAM TT) Kayak Series win at Lake Tulloch.
Tucked into the heart of the Gold Country, Lake Tulloch welcomed 51 kayak anglers to its 1,200 plus acres for the single-day, season-opening kayak competition. As the last day prior to time change, lines in was announced for 6 a.m. on Saturday, following a fishery off-limits for the week prior.
Under partly cloudy skies, within an air temp spread of the 65-degree high and 43-degree nighttime low, Silva made history becoming the first victor of the new Kayak Series by a margin of four-inches over his nearest competitor, netting the top payout of $1,371.52.
Silva sacked up five (+ one) for the day, with his biggest coming in at 19.25 inches. The bulk of his remaining fish stretched over the 18-inch mark, with his smallest at 17.50 inches. The TourneyX estimated weight was17.50 pounds.
“I did it mid-strolling a five-inch Fluke-style bait,” he revealed.“I call it power strolling.” He differentiated his power strolling technique as a variation on mid-strolling by the use of “heavy line and heavy braid and a 3/0hook.” “It’s hanging a bait on a ball head jig and working it through the middle of the water column,” he explained. “It’s almost like a level baitfish.”
The Fluke-style bait that Silva tied on was the Sakamata Shad from Deps. He noted that he rotated three different colors, without any marking a difference in the bass bite. He threw the setup on a G. Loomis NRX 742S paired with a Daiwa Exist 2500.
Fishing from an Old Town AutoPilot kayak, electronics were an integral part of Silva’s arsenal. “Four of my fish came on Garmin Live Scope,” he added.” The biggest bass of the day at 20.50 inches was caught by James Croco of Wilton, Calif.
Croco came in second overall at BAM’s Tulloch stop with 87.75.He sent in five total with a TourneyX estimated weight of 16.09. Croco earned $1041.91 for the effort, including $510 Big Fish money.
Elk Grove, Calif. angler, Jesse Hoover hoisted in five (+ four) for 85.5 to round out third place and bank $442.43. His TourneyX estimated weight was14.06.
BAM Kayak Series Tulloch Top-10
1 Joseph Silva 91.75 $1,371.52
2 James Croco 87.75 $1,040.91
3 Jesse Hoover 85.5 $442.43
4 AJ Ramirez 84 $398.18
5 Damian Thao 83.25 $353.94
6 John Myers 82.75 $309.70
7 Dang Xiong 82.75 $287.58
8 Ivan Lee 81.75 $265.46
9 Nathaniel Ferrand 80.25 $243.33
10 Matthew Brannon 79.5 $221.21
The next of the three remaining regular season trail stops include Rollins Lake, Trinity, and the California Delta. The BAM Kayak Series championship will be held on Lake Berryessa.
More information is available at the BAM Tournament Trail site.
About BAM Tournament Trail
The Bass Angler Magazine Tournament Trail (BAM TT) is an exclusive westcoast pro level tournament circuit. BAM TT delivers multiple opportunities toshowcase the talents of western anglers on several professional platforms.
As BAM TT continues to provide and refine a platform of elite events forcompetitive anglers, it creates a logical avenue for sponsors to have direct contact with our west coast anglers. BAM TT is dedicated to creating a complete package of advertising opportunities including on-site activation, internet/social media, and a YouTube and TV series that reaches a large number of viewers each day.
Proud sponsors for the BAM Trail: Bass Boat Technologies, Tackle Warehouse, Storquest, Garmin, Dish, Bass Cat Boats, Accel Marketing, Power Pole, MercuryOutboards, Bob’s machine, Wood Bros, Sticky Graphics, City of Oakley, LakeAlmanor Chamber, Jean Deleonardi Real Estate, Ford Fairfield, Valley Outdoors,Boardman Chamber, Feather River Tourism Association, Eternal Lithium, OakleyAce Hardware, Alpha Angler Rods and Fisherman’s Warehouse as our conservation sponsor.
Tournament events include BAM Pro Tour, Pro-Am and a Kayak Tour with a no entry Championship can be viewed on YouTube. Learn more here: BAM TRAIL, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
